Blacksburg wins 2 state environmental awards

Blacksburg wins 2 state environmental awards

Two Blacksburg environmental projects have won the 2008 Governor's Environmental Excellence awards.

The awards were presented last week at the Environment Virginia Conference in Lexington to businesses and government agencies that strive for environmental protection and sustainability.

The town's electronic waste recycling program, established in 2006 through a federal grant program, won a gold medal in the environmental partnerships category. According to the town's award application, through Blacksburg's partnership with the YMCA at Virginia Tech, 85,176 pounds of electronic devices and 801 pounds of batteries that would have gone into landfills have instead been reused or recycled.

Sustainability Week 2007 -- an environmental awareness campaign and celebration put on by Virginia Tech, Blacksburg and numerous businesses, agencies and residents -- won a bronze award in the government environmental programs category.

The recognition is "a source of pride" for all the individuals and groups who have worked so hard to make these projects happen, Blacksburg Public Works Director Kelly Mattingly said.

Other winners included the city of Charlottesville, the University of Virginia and the Volvo Trucks North America plant in Dublin.